Born at Midnight (Shadow Falls #1)(93)

Red dropped her body and knocked Derek back against the fence. "You don't know when to die, do you?" he growled. Another dark figure dropped out of the sky and hit Red so hard he fel to the ground. Kylie recognized Del a instantly. Derek turned back to check on Kylie's body, but another dark figure slammed him against the fence again. Without thinking, Kylie moved forward. She grabbed the vamp holding Derek and slung him away. She watched in a kind of daze as the vamp's body flew thirty or forty feet in the air to land in a patch of woods.

When she looked back, Derek stared right through her.

"Wow, did you see that?" she asked Derek, but he didn't answer.

He joined Del a in sparring with the vamp she'd kneed in the bal s. The taste of the guy's mouth stil lingered on her tongue and she wanted to spit. But first she moved in, found an open spot, tightened her fist, and swung. The vamp flew backwards and landed in a crumbled heap. Both Derek and Del a swung around and stared at each other as if confused.

"Kylie?" Derek screamed.

"Yeah," Kylie answered, but then she watched Derek run over to her body on the ground. He turned her over and for the first time she felt the shock run through her system. If she wasn't in her body, where was she?

Derek screamed her name and then said, "Breathe, damn it. For God's sake, Kylie, breathe." He shook her. Oh, crap. Was she dead?

Chapter Forty

Looking down at her clothes, Kylie realized she wore army fatigues. She was ... she was in Daniel Brighten's spirit body again-just like in the dream. Did that mean she wasn't dead?

She looked back at her own body and saw that Derek was fighting off two more vamps to keep them away from her. Del a swooped in to help. Remembering she could help them as Daniel's ghost, Kylie took a step toward them. But just like that, she realized she was back in her own body. She pushed herself off the ground, determined not to just lie there. Moving, however, caused her a ton of pain. Someone else suddenly appeared and fought beside Derek and Del a. Kylie squinted at their newest al y. Sky?

Floodlights flared to life. The night's darkness, along with several of their attackers, scurried away like rats. Burnett, along with a few other FRU-looking people, seemed to come at them from al sides. They grabbed a couple of the vamps and locked them in handcuffs at both their wrists and ankles.

Derek rushed over to Kylie. "Are you okay?"

She nodded, although her body was hurting in places she didn't know could hurt.

"What the hel happened?" Burnett demanded of Derek. He reached for Derek as if prepared to slap a pair of cuffs on him.

"It's my fault," Kylie insisted. "I made him do this."

"She did not," Derek insisted.

"No, it was my idea." Del a surged forward.

"No, they're al lying. It's not their fault." Sky moved in.

Everything seemed to go silent for a long moment, and then Derek spoke up. "Sky planted the blood that you guys found that led back to the camp. She helped those rogues take the animals. But she came to our defense in the end."

Kylie knew Derek had learned this from his mind meld with the lions. The lions had talked to him, just as she'd hoped they would. A tiny bit of happiness about being right swiveled through the chaos of the moment, and she let herself savor it.

"He's tel ing the truth." Sky held out her arms to be cuffed.

Burnett put the cuffs on her. "Why?" he asked, staring at her as if disgusted.

"They..." she said looking at the captives, "have my sister. Threatened to kil her if I didn't help them get the camp shut down." Sky glanced at Kylie. "I could do it when that was al they wanted, but this ... They promised no one would be hurt. I don't know how the lion got in your cabin, Kylie, I swear. I was told to take the witches out for a hike. I knew they were planning something, but hadn't thought ... They said no one would be hurt." She shook her head and looked back at Burnett. "I was only trying to save my sister."

"They? Who are 'they'?" Burnett growled, and looked at the two vamps cuffed on the ground. One of them growled at Burnett and fought against the handcuffs. Two of the other FRU men subdued him.

Kylie suddenly realized the red-haired vampire, the one who'd first grabbed her, had gotten away. And for some reason that thought sent chil s down her back.

"The Blood Brothers," Sky answered. "The vampire gang."

"And why did they want the camp shut down?" Burnett asked.

"They feel as if the camp is corrupting potential members," Sky answered. "And from what they said, they aren't the only ones thinking it. Most of al the rogue gangs are starting to rebel against the camp."

"Do you know where they're keeping your sister?" Burnett asked, and Kylie heard the slightest hint of sympathy in his voice for Sky's dilemma.

"No. But my father's hired someone to find her."

Holiday came rushing forward. Her gaze shot to Sky wearing cuffs. "What are you doing?" she asked Burnett.

"My job," he answered, and started walking Sky away.

Holiday shot forward. "You let her go-"

"He can't, Holiday," Sky said. "He's right. I screwed up. I'm sorry."

"What are you sorry for?" Holiday asked.

Sky looked back at Derek. "Tel her," she said.